Santa Monica: College student arrested in threats made to schools

A Santa Monica College student was arrested in connection with telephone threats that led to several Los Angeles area schools, including three in Santa Monica, being placed on lockdown May 16, police said.
The Santa Monica Police Department was notified by the Los Angeles Police Department at about 8 a.m. that a male suspect, believed to be a Santa Monica College student, allegedly called and threatened to “shoot up the school” and afterwards, commit suicide, Sgt. Richard Lewis said. The caller allegedly made references to several other schools located throughout the city and county of Los Angeles, police said.
Officers from both the Santa Monica Police and the Santa Monica College Police departments used the information to verify that the suspect was an SMC student and was scheduled to attend class on campus the same day, Lewis said.
After tracking the suspect to SMC, police directed that the college and both John Adams and Will Rogers middle schools, which are adjacent to the college, be locked down to restrict ingress and egress, Lewis said. A perimeter was also established around the college.
As officers were being deployed onto the campus, it was learned that the suspect was on campus in the Psychological Services Office, where officers detained him without incident, Lewis said.
The incident involved several local and county agencies, and police are continuing to investigate the possible motive.
Anyone with additional information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Los Angeles Police Department’s Media Relations Unit at (213) 486-5910.